Senior HR Business Partner

King's Hawaiian Bakery West, Inc; United States; On-site; USD 130,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

King's Hawaiian Bakery West, Inc is seeking a Senior HRBP to partner with plant leaders across California operations, providing strategic talent solutions, coaching, and risk mitigation. The role emphasizes collaboration with People Team and adherence to safety and quality standards.

The position involves working across multi-shift hourly and salaried teams, supporting organizational design, succession planning, and employee relations, while maintaining a strong presence on the plant floor.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of HRBP experience advising leaders and mitigating employee relations issues.
• Experience in organizational design, succession planning, and talent development.
• Familiarity with CA wage and hour laws is not applicable; manufacturing context preferred.

Responsibilities

• Serve as trusted advisor to plant and operations leaders on talent, compensation, and workforce design.
• Coach frontline and supervisors to set clear expectations and resolve employee issues.
• Use people data to address root causes in turnover, retention, and performance.

Skills

HRBP experience

Organizational design

Leadership coaching

Employee relations

Workday HCM

Bilingual English/Spanish

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

Workday HCM

Job description

Joining King’s Hawaiian makes you part of our `ohana (family). We are a family-owned business for over seventy years, respecting our roots while thinking about our future as we continue to grow and care for our customers and the communities we serve. Our `ohana members build an environment of inclusivity as they freely collaborate, pursue learning through curiosity, and explore innovation as critical thinkers. Beyond that, we are also passionate about supporting the long-term health and well-being of our employees and their families. If you’re excited to rise with our team, come and join our `ohana! The Senior HR Business Partner is a trusted advisor, coach, and strategic thought partner to leaders within King’s Hawaiian California Manufacturing Operation, supporting a multi-shift, hourly and salaried workforce across Production, Maintenance, Quality, Sanitation, Warehouse, and Distribution. This role helps California Operations leaders be successful and accountable, mitigates employment risk, and connects leaders with the People Team to deliver talent solutions that drive safety, quality, and productivity. Maintaining a visible presence on the plant floor across all shifts, the Senior HRBP builds trust with frontline employees and supervisors. The role is a resource to leaders, not a substitute for their leadership responsibilities. Routine decisions within the scope of the role are made independently, with manager guidance and approval for non-routine matters.

ESSENTIAL JOB DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Serves as a trusted advisor to plant and operations leaders on organizational design, role definition, recruiting, compensation, development, retention, and engagement; facilitates talent calibration and succession planning.
• Coaches leaders, including frontline supervisors and shift leads, to set clear expectations, provide feedback, develop their teams, and de-escalate employee issues.
• Uses People data (e.g., turnover, absenteeism, overtime) to help leaders address root causes of recruiting, retention, performance, and process issues.
• Maintains a visible presence on the plant floor across all shifts to engage hourly employees and proactively address concerns.
• Partners with Operations and Talent Acquisition on hourly workforce planning, shift staffing, and staffing agency partnerships.
• Identifies employment risk, advises leaders on mitigation, and escalates high-risk employee relations issues to the Legal Team.
• Partners with EHS on safety culture, incident investigations, workers’ compensation, leave of absence, and return-to-work/accommodations.
• Ensures consistent application of attendance, timekeeping, and overtime policies and compliance with CA wage and hour, Cal/OSHA, and food safety training requirements.
• Connects leaders with People Team partners (Talent Acquisition, Total Rewards, Internal Communications, Learning, People Solutions) to improve people processes and outcomes.
• Supports implementation of People strategy initiatives and plant-level change management for new lines, equipment, schedules, and continuous improvement.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS (EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE)

• 5+ years of HRBP experience, including building trusted partnerships with leaders, advising on organizational design, and de-escalating employee relations issues.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience required.
• Manufacturing experience supporting a multi-shift, hourly workforce required; food or CPG manufacturing preferred.
• Ability to activate and amplify our Aloha Values (Excellence, Dignity, and Telling it like it is in a way that can be heard) and Aloha Behaviors (Critical Thinking, Collaboration, and Curiosity).
• Workday, ADP Workforce Now, and ADP Workforce Management experience preferred.
• Bilingual English/Spanish preferred.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

Prolonged sitting and computer work. Ability to lift up to 15 pounds. Regular time on the manufacturing floor, including walking, standing, and exposure to noise, varying temperatures, and moving equipment. Must follow GMPs, food safety, and safety requirements, including wearing required PPE.

ADDITIONAL QUALIFICATIONS (JOB SKILLS, ABILITIES, KNOWLEDGE)

Expert understanding of organizational structure, jobs, qualifications, and compensation practices. Expert ability to advise leadership, support plant personnel, and partner with other People functions to influence outcomes. Expert knowledge of CA employment law, compliance, and employee relations, with the ability to interpret and apply laws, regulations, and policies. Working knowledge of Cal/OSHA, workers’ compensation, and leave administration (FMLA/CFRA). Familiarity with lean manufacturing, continuous improvement, and operational KPIs (safety, quality, productivity). Data-minded, with experience using quantitative and qualitative analytics to drive decisions. Strong change leadership, time management, and critical and ecosystem thinking skills. High emotional intelligence and curiosity; able to collaborate with employees at all levels. Experience with Workday HCM, including employee transactions, reporting, and dashboards, preferred. Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite.

Compensation Range: $130,000 - $180,000

King's Hawaiian is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for our ohana. We deliver irresistible Hawaiian food and aloha spirit, that families love everywhere, every day. After introducing Hawaiian foods to the world 70 years ago, we have grown into a company that provides irresistible foods and irresistible career opportunities to many. Our 'Ohana spans the country in our manufacturing plants, corporate locations, and restaurants. Our culture and work environments (both onsite and remote) help us to spread aloha culture as we nourish our employees' lives. We recognize that each of us has our home life and our work life, which is one life, and we strive to provide balance to our employees. We believe in excellence, dignity, and telling it like it is in a way that can be heard. We may not be excellent all the time, but we move toward excellence and embrace the change needed to continuously improve. -Dignity and respect are always present. -Treat everyone with kindness. -Respect ourselves and others. -Honor our commitments. -Hold each other accountable. -Practice what we preach. -Appreciate each other’s differences. -Exhibit professionalism.